| Title |
The Misalignment of the FT50 with the Achievement of the UN's SDGs: A Call for Responsible Research Assessment by Business Schools |
| ID_Doc |
71612 |
| Authors |
Rodenburg, K; Rowan, M; Nixon, A; Hughes, JC |
| Title |
The Misalignment of the FT50 with the Achievement of the UN's SDGs: A Call for Responsible Research Assessment by Business Schools |
| Year |
2022 |
| Published |
Sustainability, 14.0, 15 |
| DOI |
10.3390/su14159598 |
| Abstract |
Publication in the list of 50 journals endorsed by the Financial Times (i.e., the FT50) has become 'institutionalized' as a primary measure of research quality and prestige by business schools and faculty. This study investigated the extent to which this closed publication system is (mis)aligned with societal imperatives, in particular the United Nation's 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Research methods included both inductive and deductive analysis. Undergraduate and graduate student research assistants, enrolled in business-related programs, read all 4522 articles published by FT50 journals in 2019 and assessed their relevance to explicit and implicit concepts in the SDG framework. Additionally, potential biases that might stifle research innovation in support of the SDGs were explored. Findings included that 90% of articles were found to have no 'explicit' relationship to the SDGs, while only 17% were interpreted as having an implicit relationship. SDG-related articles were disproportionately from one journal-the Journal of Business Ethics (48.1%). There was also an over-representation of observed white male primary authors, who used North American (NA) data sets from NA institutions. A logistic regression model determined that the predicted probability of an SDG-related article increased with observed female primary authors, who used non-NA data sets and institutions. The next steps include comparing this methodological approach with machine learning techniques to find a more efficient and robust method for analyzing an article's SDG content. Business Schools with sustainability as a core value are encouraged to move beyond FT50 publications for assessing research quality, including for tenure and promotion purposes, and place more focus on assessing research relevance and impact. |
| Author Keywords |
sustainability goals; United Nations 2030 agenda; Financial Times 50; business school rankings; perverse effects; explicit; implicit; confirmation bias; selectivity bias; anchoring bias |
| Index Keywords |
Index Keywords |
| Document Type |
Other |
| Open Access |
Open Access |
| Source |
Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED); Social Science Citation Index (SSCI) |
| EID |
WOS:000840191900001 |
| WoS Category |
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology; Environmental Sciences; Environmental Studies |
| Research Area |
Science & Technology - Other Topics; Environmental Sciences & Ecology |
| PDF |
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/14/15/9598/pdf?version=1659695292
|